Common Core State Standards Focus on English Language Arts
Please watch this short six-minute video that describes the key shifts in the language art standards under the CCSS.
CCSS shift the priorities in English Language Arts proficiency as noted below:
• More requirements for reading cognitively challenging texts
• Emphasis on providing evidence, using inferences, and analysis
• Increased research and writing
• Writing and speaking increased in ways that better communicate oral and written evidence
• Increased use of academic vocabulary across all subject areas
• Reading instruction must include 50% informational text and 50% literature
• More non-fiction literature for grades 6-12 (e.g., our nation’s founding documents, great speeches, and historical
essays)
Why Should CCSS Be Integrated across Subject Content Areas?
Please view this ten-minute video that describes content integrations within English Language Arts instruction by Daniel Willingham, University of Virginia.
By integrating the CCSS across all subject content areas, similar to the principles of the Core Knowledge Foundation, learning is accelerated, relevancy expanded, and application increased. Common Core State Standards make it clear that academic content (e.g., science, social studies) must be intentionally and rigorously integrated with English Language Arts. Deeper understandings facilitate learning when content areas are integrated with English Language Arts. Under the CCSS, the following literacy integrations within subjects will be required:
• Challenging historical literature or informational text make up 50% of all reading
• Increased writing and speaking responses in all subject areas
• Improved emphasis on asking and answering high-level questions
• Increased attention to academic vocabulary knowledge and usage
• Emphasizing personal and world relevance in all subjects explored
Common Core Standards